Waterloo Catholics

BLESSED SACRAMENT PARISH

Today, the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, is the patronal feast day of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Waterloo.
Blessed Sacrament Parish was formed in 1947 and celebrated its first Mass in the small theater of Edison School on January 4, 1948. In July of that year, a temporary church building was completed on Falls Avenue.
In September, 1950, the cornerstone was laid for a combination church and school at the present site on Stephen Avenue. The first Mass was celebrated on the lower level of the new building on December 1, 1950. School Sisters of Notre Dame arrived from Mankato, Minnesota, to begin classes in the school, located on the upper level, in September, 1951.
Construction of the present church and rectory began in July, 1965; the first Mass was celebrated in the new church on Thanksgiving Day in 1966 and the new church was dedicated on April 9, 1967. Blessed Sacrament School was incorporated into Cedar Valley Catholic Schools in 2003; grades K-6 were consolidated at St. Edward School in 2019.
The parish is currently served by Fr. Anthony Kruse, who was appointed pastor in 2018.
In July of this year, Blessed Sacrament Parish will be incorporated into the Waterloo Pastorate. Learn more about the Waterloo Pastorate here:
https://bit.ly/4xdTGsz
and here:
https://bit.ly/43O03oW

> See a profile of Blessed Sacrament Parish here:
https://waterloocatholics.org/parish-profiles
> Link to the Blessed Sacrament Parish website here:
http://www.blessedsacramentwaterloo.org/
> See a historical timeline of the Catholic community in Waterloo here:
https://waterloocatholics.org/historical-timeline

Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, traditionally known as Corpus Christi.

This feast that was established by Pope Urban IV during the Middle Ages to provide a special celebration for the Blessed Sacrament. While Holy Thursday celebrates the institution of the Eucharist, the commemoration of the Lord's passion on that night suppresses the rejoicing proper to the occasion. By contrast, Corpus Christi emphasizes and celebrates Jesus' Real Presence in the Eucharist. In many places, including Rome, a Corpus Christi procession is held to honor the sacrament and give witness to our belief that the Eucharist is both "the source and summit" of our lives as Catholic Christians. It is a way, in the words of Fr. Terrance Klein, "of insisting that our glorified Christ has a corporeal, rather than simply a spiritual, presence in the cosmos."

Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, you gave us the Eucharist as the memorial of your suffering and death. May our worship of this sacrament of your body and blood help us to experience the salvation you won for us and the peace of the kingdom where you live with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.